We are all beginners in some aspects of life and quite advanced in others. With respect to useful knowledge in a specific subject area or meaningful practical expertise, most of us could accurately assess our particular level of ability.

Many of us want to improve our level of fitness, but don’t know what to do or how to begin. Others have begun a fitness program, but don’t know what types of activities to include to make their program more comprehensive and healthful. Yet others have been exercising for a while, but don’t know how to keep going or how to make their exercise activities appropriately challenging.

One of the great benefits of our increased time outdoors is the biochemical activation of vitamin D synthesis triggered by exposure to ultraviolet rays in sunlight. Of course, in today’s world, it’s important to make sure we’re not exposed to too much ultraviolet radiation. We need to balance the beneficial effects of vitamin D versus the harms of overexposure.

Exercising to Prevent Osteoarthritis At various times, all of us are occupied to a greater or lesser extent with activities of daily living that require physical exertion. If we live in a suburb, when we’ve completed our shopping at the local mall we place filled grocery bags into the trunks of our cars and haul them out of those trunks when we get home. If we live in a city, we may carry similarly filled shopping bags for several blocks or even farther to cover the distance between the supermarket and our home. Once we’re home, we may need to store some of the products we’ve purchased on the top shelves of kitchen cabinets, closets, and (again, if we live outside the city) the storage space in our garage. Other typical daily or periodic home-based activities include cleaning, doing the laundry, gardening, and taking out and bringing in trash cans or carrying trash to the disposal unit. Strength and flexibility help us take care of business All such exertions require appropriate amounts of strength and flexibility for effective maneuverability. For example, an intact and functioning rotator cuff and [...]

More and more of us allow ourselves to become distracted throughout the day by the never-ending onslaught of text messages, emails, and the pings of calendar reminders. Instead of turning off our phones, we persist in peering down at them, and our awareness of the world around us becomes dimmer and dimmer as the pull of our technological devices becomes ever stronger. The important solution to our loss of presence and control is the willingness to take on a mindfulness practice.